State May Tell Cities To Pay For Signs

Legislature - The 2002 session

Orlando Could Lose In Its Effort To Have The Billboards Taken Down By The Owners.

February 27, 2002|By Sean Mussenden, Tallahassee Bureau

TALLAHASSEE -- Orlando's drive to remove dozens of billboards hit a major speed bump Tuesday when state lawmakers renewed their push to make cities pay thousands of dollars to remove the outdoor advertisements.

Orlando passed a law two years ago that banned advertisers from putting up new billboards and mandated that all existing ones come down by 2007. A handful of other Florida cities and counties have passed similar laws to polish their skylines.

The outdoor-advertising lobby called the move an unconstitutional trampling of property rights. They demanded compensation for lost business. In September, Orlando's largest outdoor advertiser, a division of communications giant Clear Channel, filed a claim for $15 million against the city for about 70 billboards that would be lost in five years under the city's law.

The city law only covers billboards on city, county and some state roads. Billboards along Interstate 4 and other federal roads and some state roads are exempt.

For the past three years, the outdoor-advertising lobby has pushed legislation that would force cities to pay billboard owners fair market value to take down or move their signs.

Such a law would effectively kill billboard-removal efforts because city and county officials across the state have said they would be unwilling to spend taxpayer money to take them down.

"It will not be the highest priority for cities that need to pay for police, fire and other things," said Kraig A. Conn, a lobbyist for the Florida League of Cities.

Last year, Gov. Jeb Bush vetoed an omnibus transportation bill that included the pro-billboard legislation, primarily because it was brimming with controversial, conflicting provisions.

The legislation ordering payment for billboard removal resurfaced Tuesday, at the urging of the Florida Outdoor Advertising Association.

State records show that last year the association contributed more than $50,000 to the state Republican and Democratic parties and thousands more to a handful of individual lawmakers. In an election year, politicians consider billboards an effective vehicle for getting their faces in front of voters.

Skipping debate in a handful of lower committees, the pro-billboard industry legislation passed the House Council for Ready Infrastructure and is now headed for the House floor.

In his letter vetoing the omnibus bill last year, Bush pointed to a number of provisions he didn't like, but made no mention of the billboard provision. Because of that, advertising-industry lobbyists are convinced the governor will not veto the bill this year, though a Bush spokesman said it's too early to tell.